About the Garmin Ransomware Case: Here’s What Happened

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It Appears that WastedLocker Was Behind the Garmin Ransomware Attack. Here’s What We’ve Learned and How to Stay Safe!

There is something to be learned from any cybersecurity incident, and Garmin ransomware makes no exception. Read on to find out more about the ransomware strain behind the Garmin attack and how you can stay safe!

In general, ransomware is defined as 
 

a type of malware (malicious software) which encrypts all the data on a PC or mobile device, blocking the data owner’s access to it. After the infection happens, the victim receives a message that tells him/her that a certain amount of money must be paid (usually in Bitcoins) in order to get the decryption key. Usually, there is also a time limit for the ransom to be paid. There is no guarantee that, if the victim pays the ransom, he/she will get the decryption key. 

But what about Garmin Ransomware? Let us have a closer look!

Garmin Ransomware: What Happened?

On the 23rd of July 2020, the GPS and fitness wearable giant fell victim to a ransomware attack. Their internal systems got encrypted and their customers were not able to access their online services anymore for a couple of days. 

It is known that the value of the ransom that was demanded is $10 million, but it’s not sure whether Garmin paid it or not. What’s certain is that within four days Garmin restored its services and sent a press release on the 27th of July saying they 
 

have no indication that any customer data, including payment information from Garmin Pay™, was accessed, lost, or stolen. Additionally, the functionality of Garmin products was not affected, other than the ability to access online services.

Garmin also added that they “expect to return to normal operations over the few next days”.

It is believed that the ransomware strain behind the attack was WastedLocker. 
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